Episode 1.8
Episode 1.8, was the eighth and final episode in Series 1 of Broadchurch. Joe Miller, the husband on DS Ellie Miller, was revealed as the killer in the murder of Danny Latimer, after months of investigation. The episode ends with the whole town of Broadchurch lighting laterns and other forms of celebration for Danny's life. Plot After being examined by the head Medical Examiner, DI Hardy is told to have his desk cleared out by the end of the day. Frustrated, Hardy exits the room, stating that he believes he knows who the killer is. Meanwhile, at her wit's end, Ellie gives her sister the money she asked for in return for the information she knows. Ellie goes to Hardy with this information, which was that Ellie's sister saw a large man discarding clothes in a garbage bin. Ellie also informs Hardy that her son, Tom, is telling her that his laptop was stolen, which Ellie does not believe. Hardy brings Tom and Joe in for questioning. Hardy questions Tom about his laptop, and Tom again states that it was stolen. Hardy then reveals the broken laptop, telling Tom that he is aware that he was lying and that Paul Coates informed him of the threats Tom intended to make. Joe is shocked that Tom would threaten the Vicar. Hardy then shows printed copies of the emails that Tom and Danny had exchanged, and reads one aloud, where Tom states that he wishes "Danny were dead." Tom informs Hardy that he and Danny fell out, because Danny had found a "new friend." Hardy asks Tom if he killed Danny, which Tom denies. Hardy asks both Tom and Joe what their shoe size is as the pair is leaving, and Joe tells Hardy that his is a size ten. Although it is a seemingly odd question, Hardy determines that it was Joe who killed Danny, as that was the shoe size of the footprints found on the hill leading from the house on the cliff. During this, Beth Latimer finds her husband, Mark, sitting in Danny's room. When questioned about it, Mark explains that because of Beth's pregnancy, they'll have to clear Danny's room for the new baby. The couple tear up about the thought of having to get rid of Danny's possessions. While on the beach, Hardy tells Ellie about his childhood, and how his mother would tell him: "God will put you in the right place at the right time." When Ellie asks about this, Hardy gives her a pitying look. At that moment, Ellie's phone rings, and the Department informs her that Danny's phone has finally been turned back on. Ellie gives the phone to Hardy, and he receives the coordinates to where Danny's phone is. He commends Ellie on her work on the case, and Ellie, somewhat confused, leaves on a false assignment that Hardy gives her. Tracking the cell signal, Hardy knows where it is from. He enters Ellie's home and finds Tom watching the television in the living room. He exits the home and goes into the backyard, where he finds Joe holding Danny's phone in a shed. Joe tells Hardy that he is "tired of running" and willingly goes into custody. Hardy questions Joe, and the episode shows the relationship between Joe and Danny. It is revealed that Danny has been secretly meeting with Joe at the house on the hill a few months prior, in order to form an emotional bond with him that Danny felt he was unable to achieve with his own father, Mark. However, one night, Danny, feeling disgusted, informs Joe that this is their last time meeting up, and tries to leave. Joe chases him, and Danny accidentally cuts his hand on a nail jutting out from a fencepost. Joe finds him standing at the edge of the bluff, where Danny intends to jump. Joe convinces Danny to return to the hut, but Danny runs again. Joe captures him and pushes Danny up against a wall, with his hands around his neck. While yelling at him not to tell anyone what they have been doing, Joe accidentally strangles him. He takes Danny's body to the beach, along with his skateboard, with Susan Wright watching, just as she said she had. Joe returns to the house on the hill and begins to clean up the crime scene. He panics when she sees Becca Fisher pull into the drive, however, he calms down when he sees that she is only driving Mark Latimer back to his car after their late-night meetup. Joe disposes of his clothes in a dumpster (which Ellie's sister saw) and returns to bed at his own home, crying. After the flashback, Hardy continues to question Joe, asking him about the exact nature of his relationship with Danny. Joe is adamant that he only ever held and hugged Danny, never anything further, and that he never touched Tom or his infant son, Fred. When asked why Danny, Joe explains that he felt like Danny needed him, and that he also gave Danny the £500 found in Danny's room earlier in the series. Joe asks Hardy if Ellie knows, and Hardy leaves while replying that she does not. Hardy disrupts Ellie's interrogations of Nige Carter to inform her that it was Joe who murdered Danny. Ellie, distraught, sobs in a corner of the room and begins to retch. She requests to see him, and Hardy warily obliges. Upon entering the room, Ellie completely loses it, and against Hardy's implicit orders, begins to smack and kick Joe, causing her to have to be forcibly removed from the room. Later on, Hardy speaks to the other officers at the station, explaining that Ellie was completely unaware of Joe's relationship with Danny and that there is no reason to think or suspect she had anything to do with the case. He reveals that the Miller family has been temporarily relocated and Ellie is on leave with full pay. Hardy then goes to the Latimers' house and informs them of the identity of the killer. They are shocked, and Mark leaves in a rage. Hardy firmly explains that Ellie did not know. Meanwhile, Ellie is temporarily living in a hotel room with Tom and Fred. Tom is visibly confused and scared, and Ellie tells him that it was Joe who killed Danny. Ellie asks why Tom sent those messages to Danny, and Tom reveals that Danny had explained that he had found "a new friend, one who understood him better." Tom asks if that friend was his father, and he and Ellie hug, both in tears. While Hardy gives a press conference explaining the case in brief, the musings of the group are revealed. Big-time press reporter Karen White is shown to be crying, and Mark visits Joe in jail, calling him an "absolute nothing" while Joe tries to explain to his once friend and co-worker that he never touched Danny. Later that night, Beth Latimer sees Ellie standing in a field outside her home, and goes to meet her. Beth accuses Ellie, asking her "how could you not know?" and leaves. Ellie is shown to be visibly upset at the loss of her once good friend and neighbour. Ellie visits Hardy in his hotel room, and Ellie is desperate to find some sort of label for her husband, even if that label is paedophile. Hardy explains that there is no label for this kind of thing, and Ellie is confused still as to what he is, as Joe never touched Tom or Fred, and the nature of his relationship with Danny is still widely unknown. The next morning, a hearse is seen rolling through the town, as now the Latimers can have a proper funeral service for Danny. The vicar, Paul Coates, gives a rousing sermon, and later that night the whole town gathers on the beach in remembrance of Danny. Hardy is seen speaking with Ellie on a bench just a little ways away from the bonfire memorial, and it is revealed that Hardy is "done, medicalled out" of his police career, and that Ellie intends on moving away to give her sons a fresh start in their lives. The two joke about having a "former detectives club." Back at the bonfire, Beth sees an image of her son, and embraces Mark. The episode then ends with the promise of a second season. Cast Cast in order of apparance: *David Tennant as DI Alec Hardy *Tracey Childs as CS Elaine Jenkinson *Matthew Gravelle as Joe Miller *Adam Wilson as Tom Miller *Olivia Colman as DS Ellie Miller *Tanya Franks as Lucy Stevens *Joe Sims as Nige Carter *Andrew Buchan as Mark Latimer *Jodie Whittaker as Beth Latimer *Arthur Darvill as Rev Paul Coates *Oskar McNamara as Danny Latimer *Simone McAullay as Becca Fisher *Peter De Jersey as SOCO Brian Young *Pauline Quirke as Susan Wright *Vicky McClure as Karen White *Benji Yapp as Fred Miller *Charlotte Beaumont as Chloe Latimer *Susan Brown as Liz Roper *Carolyn Pickles as Maggie Radcliffe *Jacob Anderson as Dean Thomas *Jonathan Bailey as Olly Stevens *Will Mellor as Steve Connelly *Simon Ludders as Trevor Smith *Sanchia McCormack as Nicky Smith *Bailey as Vince (Uncredited) Category:Episode Category:Series 1